Auto truck group

Eric D. Lawrence Detroit Free Press Published 10:00 p.m. UTC Jul 21, 2018 If you've driven past the Gibraltar Trade Center this week, you might have wondered whether the closed public market in Mount Clemens was being reborn as an auto dealership. Rows of what appear to be brand new Ram pickups have been lining the parking lot. The explanation, according to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, for so many Ram trucks being stored at the trade center involves a rail-car shortage. "Due to an industrywide railcar shortage, FCA US is temporarily storing some vehicles at various yards. While the rail network is now showing signs of improvement, we are still working with our shipping providers to find alternative methods to deliver vehicles to their end destinations," according to a company statement. The issue has been raised before by auto industry groups. In March, an official with the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, a trade group representing a dozen automakers, … [Read more...] about Why are so many Ram trucks parked at Gibraltar Trade Center?

Good morning! Welcome to The Morning Shift, your roundup of the auto news you crave, all in one place every weekday morning. Here are the stories you need to know. 1st Gear: Here’s How That Tariff Hearing Went The U.S. Department of Commerce had hearings all day Thursday to hear from automakers, parts suppliers, ambassadors and others how they felt about the potential car tariffs the Trump administration wants to put into place, and they sure did hear a lot. Corporations and representatives from foreign governments said the tariffs would hurt the U.S. economy and disrupt the global auto industry, Bloomberg reports, and auto groups and autoworkers also asked the administration not to impose the tariffs. The hearing happened as the Commerce Department is looking into whether vehicle imports threaten national security. Here’s how some of the hearing went, from Bloomberg: “The importation of motor-vehicle parts is not a risk to our national security,” Ann … [Read more...] about Pretty Much the Entire Auto Industry Told the Trump Administration Tariffs Are Bad

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Chinese auto investors are increasingly pouring money into Europe rather than the United States because of intense U.S. scrutiny of their deals under the Trump administration, according to industry sources and M&A data. More than a dozen leading M&A bankers, lawyers and consultants told Reuters the number of mandates from Chinese clients to make investments in the European auto sector were increasing, while those for the U.S. sector were declining. “Given the way that things are tightening up in the United States, Europe for China is the most obvious non-domestic market that they’re pushing into,” said Charlie Simpson, who specializes in the auto sector for consultancy KPMG’s global strategy group. The trend, which comes as Washington is locked in a trade battle with Beijing, is supported by an analysis of data of auto sector investment in the U.S. and European markets. The United States accounted for 26 percent of the total … [Read more...] about Trade tensions drive Chinese auto investors from U.S. to Europe

Phoebe Wall Howard Detroit Free Press Published 9:50 p.m. UTC May 21, 2018 An explosion during an auto parts plant fire that ultimately stopped production of the Ford F-150 was so violent that it threw a worker through the air into a door jamb. Vehicles in the parking lot caught fire and were damaged by flying debris. A fire "detector did not alert occupants." The explosion and a subsequent blast early the morning of May 2 at the Meridian Magnesium factory in Eaton Rapids occurred because the fire suppression system at the plant added water to molten magnesium. Experts said that is like arming a bomb. Firefighters called to the factory went to the maintenance room "and looked at the bottom of the scrap conveyor (where) we saw a white glow in the tunnel. We exited the plant at that time,” Eaton Rapids Fire Chief Roger McNutt wrote in his official report. The report, made public Monday, said the plant sustained an estimated $8 million in damage. … [Read more...] about Auto parts plant blast: Fire suppression, magnesium acted like a bomb

DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co’s (F.N) quarterly earnings will be affected by shutdowns at three U.S. truck plants caused by a fire at a key parts supplier, the U.S. automaker said on Wednesday, while affirming its full-year earnings estimate. The Ford logo is seen at the New York Auto Show in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., March 29, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton “We’re confident that any impacts will be short term,” said Joe Hinrichs, president of Ford global operations, in a media call late Wednesday. Hinrichs and purchasing director Hau Thai Tang said Ford was working with the supplier, Chinese-owned Meridian Magnesium Products, to shift production of the affected parts to other suppliers until the fire-damaged plant in Eaton Rapids, Michigan, can be repaired and production resumed. A Meridian plant in Strathroy, Ontario, is among those sites that will temporarily make lightweight parts for the Ford F-150 and Super Duty … [Read more...] about Ford says lost truck production will hit second quarter earnings

DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) is working with a key supplier to shift some parts production from Michigan to Ontario, Canada, after a fire and subsequent parts shortages forced the automaker to halt manufacturing of its highly profitable full-size pickups, according to sources familiar with the companies’ plans. The Ford logo is seen at the New York Auto Show in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., March 29, 2018. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton The supplier, Chinese-owned Meridian Magnesium Products, said it is “working with the customers” - automakers affected by the fire - to move some of its tooling to a plant in Strathroy, Ontario, in a letter on an internal employee website and signed by George Asher, manager of Meridian’s Eaton Rapids plant in Michigan. The fire, whose cause is under investigation by local authorities, triggered smaller production disruptions to other vehicle manufacturers, including General Motors Co … [Read more...] about Ford scrambles to restart truck production after fire at supplier

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The latest U.S. proposal for increasing NAFTA’s regional automotive content would carry a four-year phase-in to meet a higher, 75 percent regional value threshold and new labor content rules requiring substantial work at wages of $16 an hour or higher. Flags of Canada, Mexico and the U.S. are seen before a joint news conference on the closing of the seventh round of NAFTA talks in Mexico City, Mexico March 5, 2018. REUTERS/Edgard Garrido A summary of the proposal, seen by Reuters and circulating among auto industry officials based on descriptions from Canadian and Mexican trade negotiators, would require the $16 wage on work comprising 40 percent of the value of light-duty passenger vehicles and 45 percent for pickup trucks. The U.S. plan would allow automakers to count the high salaries paid for engineering, research, sales, software and product development jobs towards 15 percentage points of these goals, a provision that benefits Detroit … [Read more...] about U.S. wants 4-year phase-in for higher NAFTA auto content thresholds

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A U.S. proposal that automobiles should be built in high-wage areas within the NAFTA region is partly aimed at increasing engine production in the United States, and more details on the plan are expected this week, Mexican officials said. FILE PHOTO - An associate is seen working in the connecting rod area during a tour of the Honda automotive engine plant in Anna, Ohio October 11, 2012. REUTERS/Paul Vernon In an idea aimed at breaking a deadlock in talks, Washington last month suggested some automotive production should happen in areas of North America paying higher salaries. U.S. negotiators discussing changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) floated the idea that 40 percent of automotive production must happen in areas paying wages of between $16 to $19 per hour, Fausto Cuevas, the director general of auto industry group AMIA, said on Tuesday. The negotiators have also indicated a preference that motors be built in the United … [Read more...] about Mexico awaits details of plan to bring auto engines to U.S.,…

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A U.S. proposal that automobiles should be built in high-wage areas within the NAFTA region is partly aimed at increasing engine production in the United States, and more details on the plan are expected this week, Mexican officials said. FILE PHOTO - An associate is seen working in the connecting rod area during a tour of the Honda automotive engine plant in Anna, Ohio October 11, 2012. REUTERS/Paul Vernon In an idea aimed at breaking a deadlock in talks, Washington last month suggested some automotive production should happen in areas of North America paying higher salaries. U.S. negotiators discussing changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) floated the idea that 40 percent of automotive production must happen in areas paying wages of between $16 to $19 per hour, Fausto Cuevas, the director general of auto industry group AMIA, said on Tuesday. The negotiators have also indicated a preference that motors be built in the United … [Read more...] about Mexico awaits details of plan to bring auto engines to U.S., officials

Are you an automaker that’s currently producing, or has ever produced, a diesel engine? If so, the odds are pretty good you’ll eventually be sued over its existence. A new lawsuit by truck owners, filed on Wednesday, alleges Ford Motor Company installed emissions-cheating software in F-250 and F-350 Super Duty trucks — built between 2011 and 2017 — to ensure they passed federal testing.At this point, all of the Detroit Three manufacturers have been accused of some form of diesel deceit. Which makes us wonder how warranted these lawsuits are. Volkswagen’s scandal started when an independent source tipped of U.S. regulatory agencies, but these truck cases frequently begin as class action suits on somewhat specious grounds. Further complicating the issue is the fact that many diesel systems are intentionally designed to burn off accumulated particulate during a filter regeneration process before returning to normal operations. In this way, the … [Read more...] about Lawsuit Claims Ford ‘Rigged’ Its Diesel Truck Engines